As some of you know, I have a fair amount of pain if I void completely. I tried a month on Lyrica, followed by another month on Neurontin, in an attempt to alleviate this pain. There were too many side effects with Lyrica, and the Neurontin was not that effective. So, today I went for a hypogastric plexus block. For those who want to know what it is, the doctor pushes a 6" needle in my back until it passes in front of my L5/S1 vertebra. The hypograstic plexus is located in front of these vertebra, but external to my spine. He made sure the needle was in the correct location by injecting contrast (ouch!) and watching on a fluoroscope. When he was satisfied with the position, he then injected some numbing medicine and a steroid.
I will have to admit, it was much more painful than expected. While sedation is usually provided, in my case it was withheld (with my consent), because the doctor wanted to be able to evaluate the effectiveness of the block without the effects of any sedation.
I had an IV, and when the procedure was over, the nurse pushed fluids to fill my bladder so we could test the block. Unfortunately, it was also not very effective. The level of pain was a high as ever, but I think the duration was a little shorter. However the doctor suggested that may be due to the neurontin. His next plan of action, should I decide to go through with it, is a lumbar block. He said it's not as bad, but there are two injections instead of one.
Good news is I'm going for more intravesical Botox on Monday! If I can't be pain free, at least I can be dry! *snicker*
